INVASION ( JoMarZeB )

PRESS RELEASE

Philippine Theatre UK Brings Powerful New Historical Drama INVASION–JoMarZeb to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2026.

Blending live performance with video projection, music, slides, and live singing, INVASION–JoMarZeb is a haunting and emotionally charged exploration of friendship, resistance, faith, justice, and memory.

Set in 1940s Manila during World War II, the play follows three unlikely friends: a devout young woman preparing for convent life, a passionate law student determined to challenge colonial rule, and a gentle schoolteacher who dreams of helping shape a new nation. As the Japanese occupation takes hold of their homeland, their friendship is tested in extraordinary ways.

Reunited as resistance fighters, the trio risks everything to help Filipina comfort women escape captivity. Betrayed and captured, they are subjected to a brutal mock trial and executed as traitors.

Seventy years later, within the quiet academic halls of Oxford University, their restless spirits begin haunting an unsuspecting physics professor. Why him? Why now? As his world slowly unravels, buried secrets resurface and the boundaries between science, history, and the supernatural begin to blur. 

Written and Directed by acclaimed award-winning director and playwright Ramon C. Teñoso, INVASION–JoMarZeb marks his 34th stage production. Teñoso is widely recognised in both the Philippines and the United Kingdom for his internationally acclaimed docu-drama KATAGMAN, which earned 32 international awards, including recognition from the Cannes World Film Festival and the Tokyo Film Festival 2022.

Most of the cast members are NHS staff. They are amateur-actors with years of stage-experience through PTUK and a great passion for theatrical arts and performance.

Originally premiered in October 2025 at the Chelsea Theatre in London under the title JoMarZeb, the play has since been partially rewritten and reimagined for the Fringe festival format.

Now rebranded as INVASION–JoMarZeb, the production is also participating in the Brighton Fringe Festival in May 2026 before its Edinburgh run.

Edinburgh Festival Fringe Performances

24–28 August 2026
20:40 (75 minutes)

Venue 45 – Old Saint Paul’s Church Hall
63 Jeffrey Street
Edinburgh EH1 1DH

Philippine Theatre UK is a London-based non-profit organisation and the only British-Filipino community theatre group in Europe.

Website: www.PhilippineTheatreUK.org
Facebook & Instagram: @PhilippineTheatreUK

Press Contacts

Tony El-Khoury
Email: tgkhoury@hotmail.com
Mobile: 07799 137108

Ramon C. Teñoso
Email: ramontenoso@hotmail.com
Mobile: 07855 333261